Context

Russia announced to suspend its participation in the New START treaty — the last remaining nuclear arms control pact with the United States.

Background

• New START’s official name is The Treaty between the United States of America and the Russian Federation on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms.
• It was signed in 2010 by U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
  • The treaty was to replace the 1991 START treaty.
• Just days before the treaty was due to expire in February 2021, Russia and the United States agreed to extend it for another five years.
• While suspending the treaty, Russia accused the S. and its NATO allies of openly declaring the goal of Russia’s defeat in Ukraine.
  

Limits imposed by the treaty:

• The treaty limits each party to
  • 700 deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) or deployed submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs)
  • 1,550 nuclear warheads on deployed ICBMs and SLBMs
  • 800 deployed and non-deployed ICBM launchers
• It also envisions a rigorous inspection regime to verify compliance. 

Together, Russia and the United States account for about 90% of the world's nuclear warheads.

Where did the issue start?

• Under the agreement, each side could conduct up to 18 inspections of strategic nuclear weapons sites every year to ensure the other has not breached the treaty's limits.
• However, inspections under the agreement were put on hold in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Talks between Moscow and Washington on resuming inspections were due to take place last November in Egypt, but Russia postponed them and neither side has set a new date.